OUR TEAM

Bea Fry 

Development and Strategic Partnerships Steward

Bea hails from St. Paul, Minnesota and is a recent transplant to Chicago. They hold a B.A. in International Relations and a B.S. in Food Studies from Syracuse University. Their background includes research on violations of the Human Right to Adequate Food and Nutrition for transgender people of color. Bea is passionate about creating and maintaining a food system which is equitable for the LGBTQIA+ community and racial minorities, promoting the integration of international human rights rhetoric into the foundation of local food systems.

Email: Bea@auachicago.org 

Alexandra Hachem

Group GAP Coordinator

Alexandra is a produce safety and compliance expert who champions safe and sustainable food systems. She comes to AUA from the Produce Safety Program at the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture where she worked directly with growers, providing them with technical assistance and conducting farm audits and regulatory inspections. Her job also focused on community outreach and program development through collaboration with federal and state agencies, local organizations and industry stakeholders. Alexandra holds a Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and a Master’s Degree in Food Technology. She grew up in a family of restaurateurs and has immense admiration for the people who put food on our table. Her work revolves around the values of fairness and respect for the earth and she is eager to start working with urban growers and together making a positive impact in the food system. 

Email: alexandra@auachicago.org 

Jazmin Martinez

Co-Operations Steward

Jazmin is a farmer from La Villita/Little Village neighborhood in Chicago and uses They/them pronouns. They are an owner-worker of Catatumbo Cooperative Farm currently located in South Chicago. They have previous experience working in social services providing crisis and trauma-informed support and connecting individuals and families to resources. Additionally, their background involves organizing within the immigrant rights movement. Through their work, they saw a need to create economic opportunities for historically excluded communities and was drawn to urban farming, particularly within a worker-cooperative model. Their work is grounded in reverence for the land and hands that feed and nourish us. They are committed to connecting urban agriculture with broader social justice movements to envision and create other possible worlds.

Email: Jazmin@auachicago.org 

Viviana Okakpu

Co-Operations Steward

Viviana Gentry Fernandez-Pellon is a farmer rooted in Chicago’s south side. She is passionate about food and medicine sovereignty, reduction of soil and water toxicity, and generative economics. She holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies and History from Oberlin College and has furthered her agricultural education by farming throughout North and Central America. She co-founded the community garden and 501(c)3 Cooperation Operation and The Chicago Mushroom Company, LLC. She grounds her work in a deep love for Chicagos land, water, and people.

Email: viviana@auachicago.org

Jasmine Barnes

Communications and Activation Steward

Jasmine deeply believes that joy and freedom are the natural outcomes of loving each other and ourselves. Detroit-born, Houston-raised and Chicago-based, She is an experienced facilitator, community builder and storyteller with a background in the education nonprofit sector. A self-identified “relationship advocate” her work is guided by her passion to create a more just and equitable world where underserved and underrepresented populations have access to resources and holistic education. Relational healing and creative self expression are two pillars that create the foundation for how Jasmine shows up in work and personal life.

Email: jasbarnes@auachicago.org

Liana Fu

Digital Organizing Steward

Liana is a recent graduate from the University of Chicago, where she studied Creative Writing and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies. She has a sharp editorial eye and care deeply about fighting for social change. 

Email: liana@auachicago.org

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

ASSOCIATE BOARD